Fairy magic wreaks havoc and midsummer madness takes over as lovers tread the delicate line between fancy and reality. This fresh and vibrant production brilliantly reflects the BBC's decades of experience when it comes to Shakespeare.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Twelfth Night (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: As You Like It (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Hamlet (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Romeo & Juliet (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: The Merchant of Venice (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Othello (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: King Lear (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: The Taming of the Shrew (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Coriolanus (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: All's Well That Ends Well (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Henry IV, Part One (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Richard II (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Antony & Cleopatra (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

King Richard III

Written in 1593, King Richard III is one of Shakespeare's earliest plays. This play differs from its predecessors, being amore structured piece, examining the development and motivations of a single character, Richard Duke of Gloucester, who will stop at nothing to gain control of the throne occupied by his brother Edward IV.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Macbeth (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: The Tempest (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

Pericles, Prince of Tyre

An audio adaptation of the classic Shakespeare drama. Pericles is at the palace of Antioch with King Antiochus to solve the riddle that will win the King’s daughter’s hand in marriage. They are surrounded by the heads of men who have died trying before him. Pericles solves the riddle, learning the terrible truth about the incestuous relationship between the Princess and the King. Pericles flees Antioch, fearing Antiochus’ wrath.

Titus Andronicus: Arkangel Shakespeare

The noble Titus returns victorious to Rome bringing Tamora, Queen of the Goths as his captive. When one of Tamora's sons is condemned to die, she vows revenge, and, aided by the villainous Aaron, she exacts a terrible retribution, inaugurating a grim cycle of rape, murder, and cannibalism. This macabre, often brilliant tragedy comes from the earliest stage of Shakespeare's dramatic career.

Mary Stuart

Elizabeth I is threatened by the survival of her Catholic cousin, Mary Stuart. Wrestling with her own conscience and Mary's popularity, the Queen agonizes over the fate of her cousin amid fears for her own survival. Court intrigue has never been more gripping than in this "acute study in the art of double dealing politics" (The New York Times).

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Julius Caesar (Dramatized)

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard.

A Midsummer Night's Dream: CliffsNotes

This CliffsNotes study guide on William Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream supplements the original literary work, giving you background information about the author, an introduction to the work, and critical commentaries, all for you to use as an educational tool that will allow you to better understand the work.

BBC Radio Shakespeare: Henry the IV, Part 2

Father and son Julian and Jamie Glover star as King Henry and his son, Hal, in this powerful production, which also stars Timothy West and Prunella Scales. In the acclaimed BBC Radio Shakespeare series, each play is introduced by Richard Eyre, former director of the Royal National Theatre.

Measure for Measure: The Arkangel Shakespeare

Telling his followers he is leaving the city on affairs of state, the Duke of Vienna appoints the puritanical Angelo to govern in his absence. Will Angelo prove as virtuous as he seems once power is in his hands? Roaming the city disguised as a friar, the duke looks on as Angelo's lust for the virtuous Isabella sweeps him into the corruption he has so sternly condemned in others. The duke's manipulation at last produces a happy ending for this dark comedy, with its brilliant exploration of the themes of justice and mercy.

Publisher's Summary

Fairy magic wreaks havoc and midsummer madness takes over as lovers tread the delicate line between fancy and reality.

BBC Radio has a unique heritage when it comes to Shakespeare. Since 1923, when the newly formed company broadcast its first full-length play, generations of actors and producers have honed and perfected the craft of making Shakespeare to be heard. This fresh and vibrant production brilliantly reflects those decades of experience.

Revitalised, original, and comprehensive - this is Shakespeare for the new millennium.

I didn't like this performance very much. Scenes are punctuated with terrible synthesizer music and the actors, while polished, aren't very engaged.

On the other hand, it is Shakespeare. That alone makes this worth listening to while at work or on a commute. But you'd be better off trying your luck on a different, hopefully livelier, version of this play; Audible offers several others.

Even without the visual, this play still comes alive in this audio version. Who would have thought it... the voices of Mr Dursley and Wallace in the same play!? The actors are brilliant and gave me an introduction to A Midsummer's that will lead to further study. Thanks

This is a decent version but is let down by the use of child actors in the fairy roles, particularly Puck. I would give it three and a half stars. The adult scenes are good enough and the actors, particularly Sam West, are really fine but I found Puck to be distracting and irritatingly nasal instead of the powerful presence he has in the text. In the absence of a better version I would recommend this if you are studying Shakespeare but be aware of it's limitations.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Francis

Gillingham, United Kingdom

9/9/12

Overall

"A Midsummernight's Dream"

I'm sorry to say I was very dissapointed with this production. The music is really very poor and not in any sort of context. The actors, especially the fairy children, are often speaking so fast as to be incomprehensible and the overall standard is not at all good. I would avoid this version if I were you.

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Mrs

Truro, United Kingdom

7/15/13

Overall

Performance

Story

"Brought it to life very well"

If you could sum up BBC Radio Shakespeare in three words, what would they be?

Brought to life

What did you like best about this story?

It is a classic

Any additional comments?

The volume of narration went down a couple of times when a particular character spoke and even with the car stereo and Kindle volumes both at maximum it was hard to hear. Apart from that it was an excellent narration which brought the characters to life.

0 of 0 people found this review helpful

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